2007 Best & Worst: Music business survival tactics

By Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer As the year rushes to a close, it's time to sift through the mountains of pop culture detritus that have piled up on our computers and in our brains over the last 12 months. Let's try to figure out what worked, what didn't and what's best forgotten by New Year's Day. Another year and another major decline in CD sales for the music business. But even as CD sales dip, labels and artists continue to find creative ways to try to sell them. Radiohead, for instance, tried to make money by telling fans they didnt have to spend a dime. Others opted for comic books. There was plenty of great music released in 2007, and thats all reviewed here, and here, but not here. Instead, what follows is a critique of what worked  and what didnt  when it came to marketing the CD over the past 12 months.

By Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer As the year rushes to a close, it's time to sift through the mountains of pop culture detritus that have piled up on our computers and in our brains over the last 12 months. Let's try to figure out what worked, what didn't and what's best forgotten by New Year's Day. Another year and another major decline in CD sales for the music business. But even as CD sales dip, labels and artists continue to find creative ways to try to sell them. Radiohead, for instance, tried to make money by telling fans they didnt have to spend a dime. Others opted for comic books. There was plenty of great music released in 2007, and thats all reviewed here, and here, but not here. Instead, what follows is a critique of what worked  and what didnt  when it came to marketing the CD over the past 12 months.

The artist: Radiohead The tactic: Completely disregarding the music businesses standard three/four-month lead time for new releases, Radiohead announced on Oct. 1 that its new album would be released in 10 days. The distribution system? The Internet. The cost? Whatever you want. The review: Downloads went off without any major hitches, even if Radiohead is keeping a lid on just how many hard drives were graced with In Rainbows. And OK, with a higher-quality CD coming out Jan. 1, ultimately the move wasnt quite as revolutionary as we press folk made it out to be, since Radiohead simply opted for a tiered release plan. But the band put the fans first, and no other group of its stature has so bluntly worked around the standard industry model. Grade: A

The artist: Radiohead The tactic: Completely disregarding the music businesses standard three/four-month lead time for new releases, Radiohead announced on Oct. 1 that its new album would be released in 10 days. The distribution system? The Internet. The cost? Whatever you want. The review: Downloads went off without any major hitches, even if Radiohead is keeping a lid on just how many hard drives were graced with In Rainbows. And OK, with a higher-quality CD coming out Jan. 1, ultimately the move wasnt quite as revolutionary as we press folk made it out to be, since Radiohead simply opted for a tiered release plan. But the band put the fans first, and no other group of its stature has so bluntly worked around the standard industry model. Grade: A (AFP / Getty Images)